Cramer's 'Mad Money' Recap: Mortgage Morass Index

08/03/07 - 07:16 PM EDT

TheStreet.com Staff

Boston Suds

Another down day and another day for people to play defense, Cramer said. In this market, a good defensive play could be the best offense. In these economic times, soft-good stocks usually perform well, but the credit crunch is having a domino effect and spreading all over the market, he said.

One company Cramer believes should continue to do well, despite everything that's going on, is Boston Beer (SAM Quote - Cramer on SAM - Stock Picks). "A brewer should thrive in good times and bad," he said. People drink beer no matter what."

A stock such as SAM, with a 13% long-term growth rate, becomes more valuable to people on the Street in hard times, Cramer explained.

There are drinkers of Boston Beer who would rather throw away their keys than give up their beer, but "personally, I'm an Anheuser-Busch (BUD Quote - Cramer on BUD - Stock Picks) guy," he said.

SAM was looking to build a new brewery, but recently the company agreed to acquire a Pennsylvania brewery from Diageo (DEO Quote - Cramer on DEO - Stock Picks) instead.

By purchasing the brewery from Diageo for about $55 million, Cramer said, SAM relieved investors of the worry of the costs associated with building a new brewery, estimated at $200 million.

SAM is near its 52-week high, but only high-quality stacks are up there, Cramer said. And it should keep going higher as market players keep building their positions in the stock. Although he may not like the taste, Cramer believes SAM is a triple buy.

Oxy, No Moron

Cramer welcomed Stephen Chazen, the CFO of Occidental Petroleum (OXY Quote - Cramer on OXY - Stock Picks), to his show and asked him about Occidental's oil production.

As people look ahead to the next couple of quarters, production is going to pick up nicely in Argentina and Peru, Chazen said. Also, "California continues to be good for us."

When Cramer asked about the worry surrounding political risk in these countries, Chazen said that, to an extent, there is always worry about political risk.

Further, the CFO commented that Occidental's chemical business was doing better last year. However, at the same time, it's a "very profitable" business, he said, and has never lost money.

"All oil stocks are trading down in unison," Cramer said. In addition to Occidental, he likes ConocoPhillips (COP Quote - Cramer on COP - Stock Picks) and Exxon Mobil (XOM Quote - Cramer on XOM - Stock Picks).

Right now there is an opportunity to get into these stocks, Cramer said. Oil stocks are among the best stocks in this market.

To view Cramer's interview with Stephen Chazen, please click here.

Lightning Round

Cramer was bullish on Raytheon (RTN Quote - Cramer on RTN - Stock Picks), General Dynamics (GD Quote - Cramer on GD - Stock Picks), Northrop Grumman (NOC Quote - Cramer on NOC - Stock Picks), Lockheed Martin (LMT Quote - Cramer on LMT - Stock Picks) , Frontline (FRO Quote - Cramer on FRO - Stock Picks), UnitedHealth (UNH Quote - Cramer on UNH - Stock Picks), Norfolk Southern (NSC Quote - Cramer on NSC - Stock Picks), Trinity Industries (TRN Quote - Cramer on TRN - Stock Picks), Nastech Pharmaceutical (NSTK Quote - Cramer on NSTK - Stock Picks), American Standard (ASD Quote - Cramer on ASD - Stock Picks), LKQ (LKQX Quote - Cramer on LKQX - Stock Picks) and Yamana Gold (AUY Quote - Cramer on AUY - Stock Picks).

Cramer was bearish on Boston Scientific (BSX Quote - Cramer on BSX - Stock Picks), Spartan Motors (SPAR Quote - Cramer on SPAR - Stock Picks), Jones Soda (JSDA Quote - Cramer on JSDA - Stock Picks), Limited Brands (LTD Quote - Cramer on LTD - Stock Picks), St. Joe (JOE Quote - Cramer on JOE - Stock Picks), WCI Communities (WCI Quote - Cramer on WCI - Stock Picks), SuperGen (SUPG Quote - Cramer on SUPG - Stock Picks) and Coeur d'Alene Mines (CDE Quote - Cramer on CDE - Stock Picks).

For more of Cramer's insights during the Lightning Round, click here.

Want more Cramer? Check out Jim's rules and commandments for investing from his popular book by clicking here.

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At the time of publication, Cramer was long Citigroup, UnitedHealth Group and Goldman Sachs.

Jim Cramer, host of the CNBC television program "Mad Money," is a Markets Commentator for TheStreet.com, Inc., and CNBC, and a director and co-founder of TheStreet.com. All opinions expressed by Mr. Cramer on "Mad Money" are his own and do not reflect the opinions of TheStreet.com or its affiliates, or CNBC, NBC UNIVERSAL or their parent company or affiliates. Mr. Cramer's opinions are based upon information he considers to be reliable, but neither TheStreet.com, nor CNBC, nor either of their affiliates and/or subsidiaries warrant its completeness or accuracy, and it should not be relied upon as such. Mr. Cramer's statements are based on his opinions at the time statements are made, and are subject to change without notice. No part of Mr. Cramer's compensation from CNBC or TheStreet.com is related to the specific opinions expressed by him on "Mad Money."

None of the information contained in "Mad Money" constitutes a recommendation by Mr. Cramer, TheStreet.com or CNBC that any particular security, portfolio of securities, transaction, or investment strategy is suitable for any specific person. You must make your own independent decisions regarding any security, portfolio of securities, transaction, or investment strategy mentioned on the program. Mr. Cramer's past results are not necessarily indicative of future performance. Neither Mr. Cramer, nor TheStreet.com, nor CNBC guarantees any specific outcome or profit, and you should be aware of the real risk of loss in following any strategy or investments discussed on the program. The strategy or investments discussed may fluctuate in price or value and you may get back less than you invested. Before acting on any information contained in the program, you should consider whether it is suitable for your particular circumstances and strongly consider seeking advice from your own financial or investment adviser.

Some of the stocks mentioned by Mr. Cramer on "Mad Money" are held in Mr. Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio. When that is the case, appropriate disclosure is made on the program and in the "Mad Money" recap available on TheStreet.com. The Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio contains all of Mr. Cramer's personal investments in publicly-traded equity securities only, and does not include any mutual fund holdings or other institutionally managed assets, private equity investments, or his holdings in TheStreet.com, Inc. Since March 2005, the Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio has been held by a Trust, the realized profits from which have been pledged to charity. Mr. Cramer retains full investment discretion with respect to all securities contained in the Trust. Mr. Cramer is subject to certain trading restrictions, and must hold all securities in the Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio for at least one month, and is not permitted to buy or sell any security he has spoken about on television or on his radio program for five days following the broadcast.

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